lunch with toucans

The great adventure that is Lima continues. 

This weekend, we got a taste of what it will be like to have a social life here.

First, we had the return of the Princeton 8. These are some of the members of the Princeton water polo team, one of whom is an old Pre-K classmate friend of Jeremy's. They spent a week in Cusco, with short stays with us in Lima on either end. After a week of hiking, high altitudes, adventures, and one hospitalization (altitude sickness, nasty bug, combination of both?), they weren't too much worse for the wear - mainly tired and sunburned.  They were terrific house guests, unfazed by our lack of furniture and supplies, lots of fun to be around. Too bad our pool was still empty, though they were happy to pose in it for a photo. 

Hopefully, this is just the first of many happy visits from friends and family. 

We also went out to dinner with Britt's boss and her husband. She is American, he is British, and they have been in Lima 2 1/2 years. They had lots of helpful tips regarding fun weekend trips and on buying furniture in Lima. He is an artist and does volunteer work in a school in a poor neighborhood. He has interesting stories of coaching a girls' soccer team composed of teen moms.

On Satuday, we checked out the local cinema multiplex. It is quite modern, with shops, cafes, very comfortable theater seats. We had a quick meal at one of the cafes. Very hip and modern looking. We saw the Mysterious Life of Benjamin Button, in the original English version with Spanish subtitles - an ideal combination.

On Sunday, we were invited for lunch by our landlords, Bela and Dany. This was quite something. They live in a lovely house on a hillside in La Molina, a suburb of Lima. The garden is really lovely, including fountains, ponds, a swimming pool, and a sort of 1/2 tennis court for a sport not unlike outdoor squash. Bela, the husband, has an amazing collection of animals. There are several ponds and fountains with different types of fish, carp and koi, but also tilapia and other things. Then, he has several aviaries with beautiful, exotic birds - toucans, brightly colored pheasants, quail, and big parrots. There are several tortoises, too. He let us feed some of the birds. 

Lunch was one of those meals that goes all afternoon, with interesting food, wine and other drinks, and good stories. 

Bela is Hungarian, and has quite a story about getting out of Hungary as a 14-year old, alone, literally running away from Soviet soldiers with lights and dogs. Eventually, he made his way across the Austrian border with a family he met that was also escaping the country with 4 children under the age of 5. He describes helping them to carry the kids and bags, running till they couldn't run anymore, finding a place to forge a river, and heading toward the lights of a city, hoping it was in Austria and not Hungary. They spent time in a Red Cross refugee center in Austria. He also has a tale of being arrested for vagrancy in southern France as a 17 year old. Eventually, he went to Switzerland, where he obtained a citizenship, an engineering degree, and ultimately made his way to Peru, where he has become a very successful businessman. Dany, his wife, has Italian roots. She is warm and charming and a lot of fun. We were also joined by their two daughters, ages 17 and 27, who are also very lively and hospitable. 

Hopefully, our stuff will arrive soon, and we'll be able to return the invitation.